The Riviera as a Film Set

A great love story between cinema and the French Riviera has existed since the invention of film. Each year this idyllic region attracts many film producers. Highly sought after, cinema’s biggest continue to make it a key destination. Let’s look at the history of this “Hollywood on the Riviera.”

Due to the diversity of its landscapes, the mild climate, the sunshine, the beauty of the Mediterranean and its many capes and luxury villas, the Riviera bewitches and continues to inspire many renowned directors and producers who are quick to make it a base. In 1955, Alfred Hitchcock got the ball rolling with his famous film “To Catch a Thief” starring Grace Kelly and Cary Grant. Shot in famous places such as Nice, Cannes, and the Hotel Carlton or along the Moyenne Corniche coastal road near Eze and Saint-Jeannet, this film met with great success and was the starting point for a long series of features shot on the Riviera.

Among the most legendary, we note for example French classics like “Gendarme de Saint-Tropez” with Louis de Funès from 1964, or “The Emmerdeur,” 1973, with Lino Ventura that takes place in and around Nice; the American series “The Persuaders!” with Roger Moore and Tony Curtis shot mainly in Nice and Antibes in 1971; “Never Say Never Again” directed by Irvin Kershner was shot in 1983 in Villefranche-sur-Mer and starred Sean Connery; and more recently “Heartbreaker” by Pascal Chaumeuil with Romain Duris and Vanessa Paradis whose plot takes place primarily in Monaco and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin.

From 1945 to today, more than 500 cult films have been shot on the French Riviera! This love affair between the French Riviera and film is not looking to stop.

The Riviera as a Film Set

The first poster of Cannes International Film Festival, created by Jean-Gabriel Domergue !

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